Flight 18
by DaleyRox
Summary: My own version of F29D with my own characters and situations...10 kids Kat, Owen, Hailey, Marissa, Cody, Nick, Luke, Michael, April and Maddie, are stranded on an island after a plane crash with no hope of rescue. Can they survive without an adult to lead
1. The Crash

**Summary: Ten kids wake up on the beach after a plane crash with all of the adults dead around them. On an undiscovered island with seemingly no rescue, the ten of them have to go through things they never imagined. They have to learn how to survive on their own with no adults and no civilizations anywhere near them.**

_**Italics mean that the character whose point of view it is in at the time is having a flashback.**_

The sun glinted in her eyes as she blinked them open. She could hear screaming, horrible, gut wrenching screaming. She felt something underneath her, as if she was laying on something. But with her one foot, which was for some reason bare, she could feel something soft. With a grunt, she lifted her head from the object beneath her and looked into a familiar face, whose gray eyes were also blinking open.

"Kat?" His voice was groggy and faint.

It was Owen, but she had no idea why she was on top of him, and why she could hear that horrible shrieking, or why her foot was bare and she could feel sand. Kat tried to remember, searching her mind desperately as she suddenly realized she felt exhausted. The first thing she thought of was the fight she and Owen were having about sitting in that one empty seat on the plane. With a sinking heart, she lifted herself up and twisted her body around so that she could see what was happening.

There was that one girl she'd sat in front of, and she was the one screaming. Her eyes were wide with terror and her mouth was dropped into a gaping screech. The screaming just went on and on, but she wasn't the only one screaming. There were other people around her. She could see so many, but she was concentrated on what was in front of the screaming girl.

It was a bloody body.

Kat slowly stood up to take a better look at what was around her. With a sinking heart, she gazed at the crashing waves, and the beachside with the soft sand. They weren't in Iowa anymore. Gazing at the horror around her, she saw blood splattered across the ground and injured people lying all across the beach.

Owen eventually stood up beside her, looking around and wondering what was going on.

Kat didn't care. She saw everyone suffering, and she hated watching it. Her mind swirling, she leapt into action, her legs tired and sore even though she hadn't been moving. She went over to the screaming girl, whom she'd recognized from the plane. She was blonde, and there was a large, deep gash across her right arm. "Hey!" Kat called.

The girl immediately stopped screaming and looked over at Kat with pretty blue eyes and a suntanned face. There were small scars all over her face, and Kat figured she wasn't much better off. Quickly, Kat took her shirt off and ripped it in half, handing it to the girl. Wearing only a camisole, she said hurriedly, "Wrap that around your arm and apply pressure. I'll be right back." The girl simply stared as Kat ran off to a tall man writhing on the ground. She held him still and examined him to see what was causing such pain.

She grimaced as she saw the huge wound on his stomach. Looking around for something to grab to pad the wound, she saw a boy wearing a hat pass by. She raced over to him and asked for his shirt. "What?" he exclaimed.

"Just give it to me," she ordered harshly. The boy took off his shirt, bringing his hat along with it, revealing white blonde hair. Kat rushed over to the man on the ground and pressed the white shirt to his wound. It didn't seem to be working, but she'd finally gotten his attention. He had been in shock from all the pain, but he was now looking up at her in surprise. "Apply pressure and make it stop bleeding."

There was another person screaming, but it was a little girl. She was looking down at a limp woman. Kat nodded at the man and looked over to the little girl. She had messy brown hair and tears were streaming down her cheeks. Kat ran over to her, looking her up and down before grabbing her by the shoulder and turning her away from the limp body.

She let out a shriek and tore away from Kat with a wrinkled nose. "Stay away from me!" she cried. Kat could tell she'd grown up in England from her British accent.

"It's alright," Kat tried to comfort her. She wasn't ready for taking care of all these people; she was after all, only fifteen. But she wasn't about to stand by and watch everyone panic. She'd taken a few courses in medical expertise from her own father because she'd been interested in it.

The little girl winced when Kat tried to touch her again and fell backwards onto the ground. She didn't say anything more, but let out a few muffled sobs. "It's going to be okay. Stay here," Kat commanded.

"She's gone, she's gone," the little girl muttered. Kat patted her on the shoulder and ran to help someone else. Her heart was pounding as she grabbed a bottle of antiseptic out of her pocket and she went to the blonde girl with blue eyes who had a gash in her arm.

"Hey, you!" Kat practically ran into her. Her arms were shaking as she squeezed out a bit of antiseptic and put it on the girl's wound. "Rub it in, and if it stings, it's working." The girl didn't even nod, but she rubbed in the antiseptic anyways and grimaced.

Kat finally looked up and saw the wreckage of the plane across the beachside. She looked over and saw Owen helping the boy with the hat with a wound on his back. She saw the man the blonde girl had been screaming about and laid down to feel his heartbeat. She gulped as she realized that his heart had stopped.

"Oh my God," she let out a sigh as the reality of the situation came crashing down on her. The plane……

_"Owen__, move it!" she grunted. Owen looked over at her, his brown eyes glinting with amusement. "You are so obnoxious," she groaned and looked over at him. His messy brown hair was in his eyes, as always and he was wearing a blue t-shirt and jeans._

_She hadn't planned to go on the plane with him, but it had turned out that way, unfortunately. The trip had been completely accidental. Kat had to go to Hawaii as a student, and Owen, being so competitive with her, had to come to. She knew he had always wanted to do better than her at everything, especially school. It was his fault she wasn't the 9__th__ Grade class president that year at Lincoln High School._

_The seats were surprisingly comfortable, with soft cushions and plenty of space to put your feet. Kat decided to sit somewhere that Owen wouldn't. Otherwise, she wouldn't enjoy the flight at all. But the place she sat in wasn't so great anyways._

_She was sitting next to an Asian girl with long black hair and a tall man that looked ahead and said nothing. Kat couldn't help glancing over at him and wondering why he wasn't speaking. The girl next to her tapped Kat on the shoulder; Kat looked over expectantly._

"_Hi," she said softly. Kat raised an eyebrow expectantly before whispering, "Hi," back. She wasn't sure exactly why this girl was interested in making friends with her. "Well," the Asian girl said slowly, as if she didn't know what to say. Before she could, she was interrupted by a voice._

"_Hey redhead!"_

_Kat knew they were talking about her. Her hair was a deep, wavy red. It wasn't the frizzy, ugly red curly hair that some people had. It was a much darker and deeper red, more brown than blonde and more wavy than curly. She'd thought it actually looked quite good, and so did other people in her school. Today, though, it was up in messy pigtails and she wasn't surprised when she sat up and saw the blonde beauty behind her._

_This girl had curly blonde hair and blue eyes, a bit darker than Kat's blue eyes. Her face was perfect and beautiful, and her hair was long and down around her shoulders. She looked at the girl behind her expectantly. "I love your hair," the girl commented. The two girls beside her giggled in an annoying way. She pursed her lips innocently and said, "Did you forget to brush it this morning, or did you Mom set it on fire while trying to blowdry it?"_

_Kat didn't say anything. She was suddenly bitter and sat down next to the girl who had tried to talk to her before. The girl continued with a soft voice, as if she was nervous the girls would pick on her too. "I'm Marissa. You are?"_

"_Kat," she grunted._

"_Meow!" Kat didn't even bother to glance back at the girl who had made fun of her name. She'd gotten used to that teasing from Owen plenty of times before. She sighed and looked over at Marissa._

"_It's nice to meet you, Kat," Marissa said cheerily. Kat rolled her eyes, wondering how she could be so happy. Happiness didn't come to Kat easily, and she hated seeing people all smiling and joyful and enjoying life when horrible things happen all of the time. She just couldn't fathom it; maybe they didn't understand the pain of losing something._

_She didn't really feel like speaking with Marissa, but the girl went on anyway. "I'm from Tennessee, but the plane made a stop in Iowa. Are you from Iowa?" Kat only nodded. She was already tired of this girl's cheery voice and happy attitude._

"_Look, I'll be right back," she told Marissa as she stood up and went over to where Owen was sitting._

"_Hey," he said lightly. She rolled her eyes and looked at him._

"_You know that I know what's going on, right?" Kat said with a wrinkled brow._

"_No. What's going on?" Owen asked. Kat hated when he acted like he was completely clueless. She knew that he was too competitive with her to pass up an opportunity like this._

"_I know that—" She stopped._

_Suddenly, the plane jerked slightly. She looked around in surprise. The seatbelt sign above the airplane seats blinked on, and Kat heard the blonde say from across the aisle, "What is going on?" She rolled her eyes and looked at Owen as a voice came over the loudspeaker, announcing, "The seatbelt sign has come on. Please buckle your seatbelts."_

_Just as the announcer was finished, the whole plane lurched. A few people let out yelps and the girls behind them shrieked. The plane continued to lurch from side to side, spilling contents from the shelves above. A few people let out terrified screams as a metal suitcase flew down and smashed a man on the head, spilling blood everywhere. Kat grimaced as a drop of blood hit her cheek. She hurriedly wiped it off and looked around for a seat. The seat beside Marissa was too far away. She held onto the arms of the seats and looked around desperately. The plane lurched again and she almost fell to the ground._

"_Owen!" she screamed. Owen grabbed her arm and unbuckled his seatbelt. Without thinking, Kat sat in his lap and let him wrap the seatbelt around them._

_All of the sudden, there was a huge lurch. The oxygen masks and bags popped out of the ceiling as Kat twisted her head around to see what had happened. She could see the sky, and the air was being sucked out as she widened her eyes and realized the whole back of the plane had torn off in midair. Owen's arms were wrapped around her as they both grabbed an oxygen mask and put it on. She closed her eyes tightly, and it was suddenly black._

Thinking back on it, Kat now realized why she had woken up on top of Owen. She wanted to sit down, but there were other people to help. She saw Marissa helping a boy up from the water and dragging him onto the shore. She sighed and rushed over to another man. Everything was a blur, and the screaming people around her made it even more nerve wracking.


	2. Day 1 Midday

_Day 1…Midday_

Cody looked out at the crashing waves as the people around him hurried and rushed to help one another. It was as if it was calming to him, the clutter around him. He let out a sigh as he saw that familiar redhead girl romping about and trying to save everyone she saw. He wondered how she knew so much about health and doctoring and all of that, but that wasn't any of his business.

He barely even remembered waking up, his mind was so whirled around; it made him incredulous of how active that redhead and the boy she was criticizing could be. They were carrying bodies up the shore as the tide came in. It was as if they were hoping that somehow the people would reawaken and help them through this. Cody knew it wasn't going to happen. He was a realistic boy, with wisdom beyond his sixteen years.

"Aren't you going to help?"

Cody was taken by surprise when he saw a girl standing in front of him. He'd been so concentrated on his own thoughts he'd forgotten that people might want his help. She had long, straight brown hair and sparkling brown eyes that were sharply pointed in his direction. "What's the use?" Cody said calmly. The girl narrowed her eyes and stalked away to help the redhead drag a limp body into the many trees.

Cody hadn't seen it from far away, but he could tell that this island, or whatever they'd crashed on hadn't yet been touched by humans, until now. The jungle was sparse, and as far as he could see, it took up most of the island. There was no way he was going in there; there could be some huge bear waiting to tear them apart. The only thing he was sure of was that he wasn't ready to get up and start helping people. He needed to let this sink in.

He didn't quite remember everything yet. The crash was still fuzzy. All he knew was that the back of the plane was completely torn off, bringing most of the people on the plane into the water, and most likely killing them. It was remarkable that he had even survived the crash; he was sure that all of them would've died from such an intense crash.

He let out a sigh as the redhead dragged another body out of the water. It was a dark-skinned girl that he recognized. He held back the tears in his eyes as the redheaded girl dragged her up to where the sand was soft and dry. He couldn't help leaping up onto his feet and had an urge to go and help. Unable to stop himself, he rushed to the redhead's side.

Looking down at her, his heart lurched when he saw her glazed eyes. It all came back to him when he saw her beautiful face.

_She sat down next to him on the cushioned seats and let out a giggle. "Hey, Julie," he said softly while putting his arm around her. She had a beautiful face, with makeup on and soft brown eyes that matched her short black hair. Her skin was dark, like Cody's own._

"_Where were you?" he asked._

"_Oh, nowhere," she said teasingly. "Just with…someone…" Cody rolled his eyes, knowing that she was only joking._

"_Don't go stepping out on me, Jules," he laughed. Julie laughed along with him, and leaning against him. She kissed him lightly on the cheek and he grabbed her hand._

"_You're the greatest, you know that?" Cody sighed. Julie simply cocked her head innocently, as if she knew he was right. They stayed like that for a few minutes as people moved around them. It seemed so strange to be on this flight. It was a once in a lifetime chance, and Cody was glad that he could share it with his dream girl, Julie. She flipped her hair over her shoulder and glanced at a girl walking by. She had curly red hair and was talking with a boy in a seat nearby. A small girl and her mother were sitting in front of them and she was complaining loudly and shouting at her mother._

_The plane lurched slightly. Cody figured it was just a strong air current, but he could feel Julie's grip tighten on his hand. "It's okay, just an air current," he assured her. She nodded. From the fear in her eyes Cody could tell she wasn't convinced._

_Screams emitted from people as the plane lurched again and objects started dropping from the compartments above. Cody quickly shoved a bag away before it hit Julie's head. She let out a gasp and clutched onto Cody's gray shirt. The redhead was hanging onto the sides of the seats and stumbled into the boy's lap. Cody wrapped his arms around Julie, figuring this was a bit more than just a simple air current._

"_Cody!" Julie screamed as the back of the plane tore off. By now it was just a blur. He grabbed an oxygen mask and put it on Julie, and then put one on himself. His stomach flipped as the plane dove downwards and he fell unconscious as it smashed into the ground._

"Hey! Hey!" Cody was brought back to reality as the redheaded girl snapped in his face. He looked up at her blue, blue eyes and raised his eyebrows. "I asked, could you help me with this?"

"_This?_" Cody asked incredulously. The redheaded girl cocked her head and explained.

"We have to move all the dead bodies off of the shore so that their not swept away with the tide," the redhead explained. Cody only nodded and grabbed the body's hand. He shivered when he felt how cold her hand was. It made his eyes wet as the redhead roughly dragged her along, but he dared not to cry. Everyone around was crying, that is everyone except for the dead and the redhead pulling them out of the tide.

They pulled the body until they were at the edge of the jungle. Neither of them knew how high the tide would come and they didn't want to take any chances. The redhead set the body down and looked at it for a moment. Cody collapsed beside it and tried to hide his tears.

Obviously he was unable to suppress the sobs that escaped his throat. The redhead didn't sit down for a moment, but she stood and watched him sob into the sand. "You knew her, didn't you?" Cody didn't look up; his eyes weren't even open. He couldn't bring himself to look at her, especially when Julie's dead body was lying next to him. He hated crying because it always made him feel so weak and vulnerable.

"I'm sorry," the redhead said softly before retreating to drag more bodies up the beach. It was as if she couldn't stop to rest, and that made Cody restless. He finally glanced up at Julie's dead body and held her hand before standing up and helping with the wreckage. A few people had moved on from dead bodies to moving the plane wreckage from the shore. Cody figured that they probably wanted to use it all for something. Some were moving suitcases and bags and tarp, others were moving metal pieces.

There were a few injured people sitting at the edge of the jungle, groaning and writhing about. Cody was sure they would be dead by nightfall, and he hoped desperately that a rescue plane would come by then. But, of course, wishing for such things were childish. He was intelligent enough to realize that wishing for something wasn't going to make it happen.

He grabbed the edge of a large hunk of metal that a small boy was trying to haul up towards the jungle. "L—let me help you with that." He was still a little dizzy from seeing Julie's dead body, but he decided that he was going to do something about it. The little boy, who looked about thirteen, looked up at him in surprise.

"You're helping now, are you?" he questioned. "Instead of sitting around?"

"Excuse me?" Cody dropped his side of the hunk of metal, causing the metal to shift onto the boy's foot. He let out a yelp of pain and leaped backwards, holding his foot in the air.

"Hey!" the loud redhead came over with a look of annoyance on her face. "Cut it out! Unless you want us all killed!" She glanced between the two as if they were idiots. "Is that what you want? I didn't think so! So stop fooling around and get some work done!" She trudged off and picked up some tarp.

"Sorry, dude," Cody said quietly. "I didn't mean for it to drop on your foot." The boy nodded in acceptance.

"I shouldn't have insulted you," he said. Together, they both carried the metal to the edge of the jungle. Both collapsed and looked around to see that practically everything was brought up to the jungle. Cody wondered what they were going to do next; hopefully wait until the rescue plane came.

Cody closed his eyes tightly, trying to keep Julie off of his mind. It was almost impossible, but he could at least try. Her death was so hard, it was like a dagger had been plunged into his heart and he'd been killed himself. He felt almost guilty, as if he was the one that should've died. It was hard thinking of her as…gone.

Cody heard a shuffling nearby and opened his eyes. There was the redhead, dressed in only her camisole. He wondered why, but the blonde crawled over in the sand with an answer. "Do you want your shirt back?" she asked. The redhead looked up and shook her head. Cody could see that her shirt was wrapped around the girl's arm and stained with blood.

"Hey, uh…" A boy with dirty blonde hair strolled by, but he paused when he saw the redhead in just a camisole. She looked him up and down with a sour expression playing across her face.

"What?" she said. Her voice was breaking. She grabbed a suitcase that was near her and started shuffling through it. Finding a sweatshirt, she wrapped it around herself and sat down with a sigh.

"So…" She was the first one to speak. Cody could already tell she was headstrong and hopelessly eager. "Does anyone have any idea what's going on here?"

No one answered her. It was as if the scene around them was much too horrible to bear. Cody didn't want to speak either; he was still in shock from Julie's death.

"Who else is hungry?" said the skinny boy with dirty blonde hair.

The redhead looked over at him. "Owen, that's the least of our worries right now." Everyone pondered this for a moment, and looked at each other.

"Where are the adults?" asked the blonde girl worriedly. Her voice was squeaking and panicked.

"There's one over there…" the redhead said. They all stared over to where she was pointing. A man was groaning and grimacing on the ground beneath a palm tree. The blonde groaned in disgust and everyone looked away. Cody knew it was most likely impossible for him to disguise. Cody looked at the little boy next to him. He finally took the time to gaze at the people around him. From what he could see, there were only nine. Why was he one of those nine? There was an Asian girl sitting next to a strangely dark seventeen-year-old guy. Beside them was an African American guy about Cody's age. The dirty blonde boy was sitting next to the brunette that had criticized Cody for not helping. Cody couldn't help gazing at her deep brown eyes for a moment. They were so much like…

He shook his head, forgetting that he wasn't supposed to be thinking of Julie. It only made the sick feeling in his stomach worse.

"I have a question…" the dirty blonde boy announced, standing up. There was a scar along his right shin, and another one across his cheek. His gray eyes darted around at everyone. "Why is it that only kids who have no idea what they're doing survived?"

"Dude, who cares?" the African American sixteen-year-old said hauntingly. "Our plane just crashed and everyone around us is dead."

Cody couldn't stop himself from flinching. Everyone looked at each other uncomfortably, as if the African American boy had said exactly what they'd been pushing away. Saying it only made it seem more real, and most of them had hoped that everyone else would feel the same way. Apparently, the African American boy didn't think that saying it would make a difference.

There was a loud and horrified scream from the man over beneath the trunk of the palm tree. The blonde girl let out a whine and the redhead leapt to her feet. Cody followed her to where the man was.

He looked down at the redhead as she knelt beside the injured man and pressed a white t-shirt into the gruesome wound on his stomach. She was trying to stop the bleeding, but it didn't seem to be working. Cody was beginning to wonder if she thought she could actually save him. As the man let out another terrifying screech, Cody sighed.

"Just give up. It's not going to work," he told her. She looked up at him as if he had three heads, obviously offended.

"What?" she accused. "You want to take over? You want to just let him die here? I'm going to keep him alive until the rescue planes come, how about you?"

The man coughed and spluttered, throwing up blood. "They…" he tried to say. The redhead patted his head.

"I need water!" she ordered Cody. He felt like she was pushing him around, but decided to listen to her. He wanted the man to survive, but it was practically impossible. Going as fast as he could, he raced over to the others.

"Does anyone have water?" he asked quickly.

"What happened?" the blonde girl breathed. She was obviously going to throw up if Cody told her anything, so he didn't answer her question.

"Water!" he repeated. Everyone shook their head. He let out a groan and returned to the redhead. "There is no water." He saw this than more of a problem for the dying man. It was much more than that; if they were here for too long without water, then there wasn't much hope of surviving.

"Damn!" the redhead cursed and pressed the t-shirt into his wound. "Get me another shirt." Cody wrinkled his nose as more blood came spurting out of the man's mouth. "Now!" the girl snapped.

Cody obliged and found one as quickly as he could. He was beginning to think this wasn't worth it. The man would be dead by nightfall, he was sure.


	3. Day 1 Afternoon

_Day 1...Afternoon_

Marissa looked at everyone around her. It was so strange; she could get to know these people. Being the optimist she always tried to be, she did her best not to think about the cadavers around them, or the gash above her eyebrow that was stinging like heck. She sighed and watched as the redhead came trudging back from the writhing man beneath the tree.

"How is he?" she asked hopefully. Maybe if an adult survived, they could find a way to get them food and water. Her stomach was already rumbling, though she wouldn't complain to anyone else.

The redhead, whom she'd remembered as Kat, didn't say anything. Marissa could tell she was trying to hold her tears back and she sat down and placed her head on her knees.

Cody came one stride after her, and he said, "I knew it. He's dead." A sinking feeling came to the pit of Marissa's stomach, but she pushed it away. She looked at everyone's faces; they seemed to be losing all hope. It had at least been a few hours, and not one plane had flown by.

Weren't they looking for them?

She sighed and looked over at Kat, who was closing her eyes as if remembering something. "So……" the blonde said slowly. "What now?" She asked the question that all of them had been wondering. Everyone looked to Kat, who had since obviously taken charge.

"What _can_ we do?" the brunette with the long face sighed.

"We need to find water," the dirty blonde boy suggested.

"Why don't we introduce ourselves?" Marissa offered. Everyone looked at her.

"Please," Kat criticized. "That's the least of our worries."

"Is it?" Marissa said. The kids shared confused glances with each other. "Do you really believe we're just going to be rescued and this is going to be over with? You do realize, once we get rescued, we're going to be interviewed and interrogated and all of that. Shouldn't we at least know each other?"

None of them seemed to agree with her. The redhead stood up and said, "No, we shouldn't. We should all search for some water."

Everyone nodded their head in agreement. Marissa couldn't help agreeing with the dryness of her throat. She hated that feeling, and the scorching sun wasn't helping at all. Everyone stood up and began to look through suitcases and bags.

Marissa found a few pills in a red suitcase. She handed them to Kat, who looked them over and nodded in thanks. She didn't say anything else. Marissa was beginning to think that Kat wasn't the most social person on the island. She couldn't believe that everyone had passed down the opportunity to at least know each other's names. Perhaps it was the fact that it would make it all seem so strange, perhaps it made everyone think that they were making a knew family and that they wouldn't get off of this island. Marissa was sure the rescue planes would come, and she was also sure that getting to know each other would be better than searching for things with complete strangers.

Something caught her eye as she was searching for another bag to look through. It was a small shape, down the beach. At first, she thought it was another body, for it was absolutely still. She decided to figure out what it was.

Slipping away, she made sure that no one could see her. Trudging down the beach, the sand wormed its way into her Reeboks and suddenly felt uncomfortable. With a sigh, she saw that the figure was a small girl. She was certainly breathing, but she didn't seem to be moving.

Marissa quickened her pace. Panic began to grip her, until she got a bit closer and saw that the girl was only staring solemnly out into the ocean. "Are you okay?" she asked worriedly. The little girl didn't answer. She seemed so small and helpless: her brown hair was messy and covering her tired eyes. Her cheeks were splattered with dirt and red with blood.

Marissa didn't know what to do. She was worried about the girl. If she didn't talk, she might not eat or drink. Perhaps she was in too much shock to speak. Perhaps she lost someone very dear to her, or something. Marissa wasn't sure how to respond to her silence, so she simply sat there.

"My name is Marissa," she said softly after a few moments. The girl slowly turned her head and looked at Marissa as if wondering why she was talking to her. Marissa was wondering why she wasn't speaking. She decided to continue on with a conversation. "It's scary, isn't it?" The little girl looked out into the sparkling blue ocean just as a wave crashed to the shore. Marissa knew exactly what she was thinking. Such a little girl, about twelve years old, wouldn't have come on a plane ride alone. She must've lost someone in the crash.

Marissa herself had come alone…

_The plane was crowded, with many people trying to find their seats and sit down next to a friend or a family member. People were laughing and some were crying or yelling. Marissa saw a few handicapped people sitting in the first seats, sour looks painted on their faces._

"_Excuse me!" Marissa looked to her left and saw a boy with a hat shoving past. He was small, and looked about thirteen._

"_I'm sorry," she said brightly. She herself couldn't help being happier than the rest of everyone on the crowded plane. She was going to Hawaii! A place she'd only dreamed of going, and now those dreams were coming true._

_She couldn't wait to visit her…it had seemed like months since she'd seen her. Waiting almost seemed like agony; she didn't want to wait to see her shining smile and her bright eyes. Maybe then she could finally feel like she belonged somewhere. Maybe she would take her in and give her a real home…maybe this trip could change her life._

_She hadn't dared come with her father, though. If he knew she was going on this flight, he would've come right aboard and stopped her immediately. The last thing he wanted was for Marissa to go to Hawaii and see his enemy. That was why Marissa hadn't told him she was going._

_She had felt so guilty about leaving without telling him. He would be wondering desperately where she was and what she was doing and if she was alright. She figured without a doubt he would decide where she'd gone and come and get her from Hawaii. But at least Marissa would've been able to spend a few moments there. Thinking more and more about it, she became even more excited and happy._

_When she finally found a seat, it was next to a redhead, who was wearing a cute yellow polo t-shirt and cargo shorts. Marissa was happy to find that the seats were made of red cloth, and more comfortable then she had expected. Maybe this would be the best decision of her life. Maybe she would get to finally see her, and tell her how she's felt for all these years._

_For the first time, she was feeling glad that she'd left and decided to go on the flight. She was absolutely sure this was the right decision._

_Suddenly feeling even more bouncy then usual after the plane took off, she tapped the redhead on the shoulder. It would be nice to have someone to talk to during the flight. Marissa didn't much like reading and barely had any books or portable video games. Plus, this curly redhead looked like the sort of person she would like to speak with. She had an interesting and unique, sort of tomboyish style._

_The redhead turned and looked at her. "Hi," Marissa said cheerily. She said hi back, with a raised eyebrow. Deciding that she wanted to continue the conversation, Marissa said, "Well…" She was about to say more, but something cut her off._

_A call came from behind the redhead's seat. "Hey redhead!" The redheaded girl turned to look at the girls behind them with her interesting blue eyes. Marissa couldn't help being nervous. The look in her eyes was fierce, as if she couldn't believe they had taunted her even with one word. Marissa turned to, and saw a gorgeous blonde girl with curly hair and sky blue eyes. It was no wonder she was teasing the redhead. She was wearing a lacy tank top and a tan miniskirt._

"_I love your hair," the blonde commented with a devilish glint in her eyes. Marissa could tell what sort of person this was. She was the prom queen cheerleader with great looks and a beautiful face. The girl continued, and Marissa could tell from her tone that she was taunting the redhead. Her hair was up in messy pigtails that she obviously hadn't cared much about. "Did you forget to brush it this morning, or did your Mom set it on fire while trying to blow dry it?"_

_Marissa was surprised by the look on the redhead's face. It was suddenly bitter and angry as she sat back down. It caused Marissa to wonder if she was offended by the comment, or something deeper than that. But it was none of her business. The redhead obviously didn't want to listen to the prissy girls behind them any longer._

_Desperately attempting to brighten up the redhead's mood, Marissa went on, "I'm Marissa. You are?"_

_The girl let out a barely understandable grunt: "Kat."_

_Marissa was so deep in thought when she heard this name, she barely heard the blonde behind them say, "Meow!" so loudly that everyone could hear. Marissa saw the redhead called cat roll her eyes and she was brought back to reality by her sour expression._

_Marissa wanted to say something more about her name, about what it meant to her, but all she could say was, "It's nice to meet you, Kat." Marissa tried to start up another conversation, but it didn't seem much like Kat was listening. She even brought up where she was from, but the redhead simply didn't care. Maybe Marissa had been wrong about Kat._

"_Look, I'll be right back." She stood up and left. Marissa narrowed her eyes and sighed. Hopefully people in Hawaii wouldn't be so arrogant and unfriendly._

"_Ooh! Rejected!" laughed one girl behind them. Her straight brown hair was up in a ponytail. The other had white blonde hair, a bit lighter than the girl who had taunted Kat. Marissa simply ignored them as they laughed; if they wanted to be obnoxious she wouldn't stop them. Their taunts meant nothing to her, but the way Kat had treated her made her a little queasy. Was she really that uninteresting?_

_She heard a little girl in front of her whining and screaming: "Mommy! I don't want to go!" She sounded a bit too old to be crying like that, practically twelve. Marissa tried not to pay attention, but her screaming was too loud to ignore. She heard groans from the girls behind her._

_The plane suddenly lurched. She looked around and saw everyone glancing at each other worried. The seatbelt sign blinked on and a voice came over the loudspeaker. "The seatbelt sign has come on. Please buckle your seatbelts." Marissa immediately did as she was told. The plane lurched again and people began to scream._

_A man nearby was bludgeoned by a metal suitcase and the girls behind her shrieked as the blood splattered over them. Marissa looked behind her, her heart pounding and wind roaring through her ears as the back of the plane tore off. The oxygen masks dropped down and she grabbed it as quickly as she could._

_Hands shaking, she was unable to put the mask on. She held her breath and simply held it to her face while fumbling with putting the strap over her black hair. The sound was horrible, like a hurricane sucking up a barn or a building in the movies. Her eyes were wide and everything went black._

Marissa closed her eyes tightly, flinching while remembering what had happened. She had never felt so horrified in her life. Sure, she had been through horrible things, but nothing like that. It made her imagine other horrible things, and that was not what she wanted to do at the time.

"I'm sorry," Marissa breathed, not even looking at the girl anymore. She, too, was looking out at the ocean. The girl didn't respond.

"Hey!" The call came from none other than the redheaded girl. She was standing beside them, and Marissa hadn't even noticed. "Stop resting and help us find some food and water!" Marissa tried not to give her a look saying "Back off!" She herself stood up and glanced at the little girl before returning to help the others.


	4. Day 1 Nightfall

Owen looked over at the African American boy. He was strong and muscular, at least a year older than himself. They were both searching through the same bag, looking for a bottle of water.

The sky was ominously darkening, and it made Owen nervous about when the rescue planes were going to arrive. "Hey," he said to the African American boy. He looked up. Owen held out a hand. "I'm Owen."

"Michael," the boy took his hand and shook. As if inspired by Owen's introduction, Michael went on, "How long do you think it will be before they come?"

"What do you mean?" Owen took out a blue t-shirt and tucked it in his pocket.

"The rescue planes," Michael explained. Owen looked up at him. It was as if he'd just read his mind.

"It won't be long now," Owen reassured him. His hand dove into the bag once again. Suddenly, he didn't feel something like cloth, something soft. It was hard, and when he pressed down on it there was a crackling noise. "Water!" he exclaimed.

Everyone instantaneously looked up and ran over. "Let me have it!" the blonde girl exclaimed. The tall, dark, punk seventeen-year-old stepped forward and looked down at Owen. He took a wary step back; the guy's work of intimidation was working.

"I'm so thirsty!" said the little boy wearing a hat. He looked about thirteen, not much older than the girl the Asian girl had been sitting with. "I say I should get it! I'm the youngest!" Owen hid the water behind his back so that the tall, gothic boy couldn't grab it from him. This was going to be a hard decision to make.

"I should get it! I'm about to faint!" the blonde complained. Owen looked her up and down. Even with her messy blonde hair and mud staining her cheeks, she still looked awfully attractive. He couldn't help being tempted to give the water to her.

"It should be mine," the tall goth said darkly. Owen exchanged a nervous glance with the blonde girl.

"Hey, man, calm down." Owen put out a hand as a sign of peace. The last thing any of them wanted was to become enemies with such a muscular looking, dark guy. The makeup from his eyes was stained on his face.

"Please, I'm just so thirsty," the blonde whined again.

"It's mine!" Michael said defensively. Owen tucked it into his back pocket, prepared for the fight that was about to break out. He hoped desperately that the rescue plane was about to fly by soon. Otherwise, they might kill each other before rescue even arrived.

_Owen looked around and sat down. Reluctantly, he saw that Kat had moved away from him and gone to find a seat somewhere else. The only reason he'd come on this stupid trip was because of her. He couldn't let her live a glamorous life in Hawaii learning how to become a doctor while he sat idly by waiting for a college scholarship. She was much too competitive with him to let something like that go._

_He could just see her, coming back from Hawaii with a terrific tan and laughing at him as she went off to college before she was even a junior. She wasn't even sixteen; he was older than she was and she didn't deserve this any more than he did. So he decided to talk to the committee and find a way to get him on that plane. He hated her, he was sure of that, but there was no other way of getting back at her. She was self-righteous and snobbish and much too full of herself, and he hadn't been looking forward to sitting on a plane with her for hours on end. Luckily, she had already moved away and he was sure that she wouldn't be coming back._

_He'd gotten her to believe that he didn't even know she had a scholarship until he'd already gotten it. He was pretty sure it had worked, but there was always that suspicion that Kat was too intelligent for his games. She seemed to act like she didn't get what he'd done, but he was ready for her to play games too._

"_Hey, man, you got a tissue?"_

_Owen turned to a tall, muscular guy with dark makeup on. He couldn't help widening his eyes and slowly shaking his head. Of course, this was a problem. Kat was probably sitting with some cute boy that she was flirting with and he had to spend his time next to this tall dark ghost that was paler than the color white._

"_Dude, move," he said. Owen obliged and stood up so that the guy could go and get a tissue from the bathroom. He left his black bag on the seat beside him._

_He heard giggling over from where Kat had sat, and suspected that he had been correct: she was flirting. She always did this; flirted with some random guy in front of him to prove a point. Owen, after all, had said a thousand times that Kat wasn't attractive in the least and she never had a chance. That wasn't, in his part, true, though he would never admit it. He couldn't help wanting to get up and see who she was sitting with._

_But he held himself down. This would only make Kat even more sure of herself, and she didn't need more confidence. A tall, gangly man wearing a baggy sweatshirt trudged past him, up to the cockpit where the pilot was driving the plane. Owen figured he was going to the bathroom._

_That was when Kat came across the aisle towards him. She looked almost aggravated. Owen couldn't help being smug; the guy she was sitting with mustn't have worked out. "Hey," he said, trying not to giggle himself._

"_You know that I know what's going on, right?" Her brow was wrinkled as she said this. Owen tried to act dumb, but he knew this conversation would come up eventually._

"_No. What's going on?" he asked, trying to sound as innocent as possible. It wasn't making Kat's attitude anymore pleasant, but he was enjoying it at the moment. He found pleasure in making her squirm, though he didn't know exactly why._

"_I know that—" she paused as the plane jerked a bit to the left. Owen looked around, a bit confused as the seatbelt sign blinked on and the announcer over the loudspeaker asked everyone to buckle their seatbelts. Kat didn't listen._

"_What is going on?" someone shrieked from across the aisle where Kat had been sitting as the plane lurched again. Apparently she hadn't been sitting with a boy. The movements of the plane became more jerky and the lurches more intense. Things began shifting out of their shelves._

_Owen turned his head as a suitcase hit a man on the head and he began to bleed. Blood spattered everywhere. People were screaming and looking around frantically, wondering what was happening. The plane lurched again, even larger than the others and Kat almost fell to the aisle floor. She had to hold onto the arms of the seats to get her balance._

"_Owen!" she screamed desperately. Owen unbuckled himself and guided her into his lap, where he wrapped the buckle around both of them. He barely remembered doing so, but it was in the spur of the moment._

_A horrible sucking sound, like a nuclear vacuum roared in Owen's ear as he realized that the back of the plane had torn off. Kat was struggling in his lap as the oxygen masks popped out of the compartments in the ceiling. They both grabbed them, Kat taking the one of the gothic guy who had been sitting next to Owen._

He couldn't help remembering at this moment, waking up and being underneath Kat. How strange that had been, and he was surprised she'd stayed there for a moment.

He snapped back to reality as the gothic guy shoved him to the ground.

"Hey!"

Everyone looked over to where Kat was standing. She was holding another bottle in her small, delicate hands. It was half filled with water, where as Owen's was full. "What are you," she accused, "animals?" Everyone looked around at each other, suddenly realizing how they'd been acting over a bottle of water. Owen stood up and brushed the sand off of his jeans, taking the bottle out of his pocket and holding it close to his stomach so that no one could snatch it before the dispute was settled.

"The rescue planes will be here any time now," Kat continued. She'd grabbed everyone's attention with her strong voice and important, majestic presence. Owen couldn't help wishing he had the power to do something like that. Kat entered the circle of people that had almost become a fracas, looking around at each of them in turn. She went on, "We can't let ourselves turn into savages just because of one day stranded on an island. We're not alone. We won't go crazy. Not if we work together."

"We don't even know each other," a dark-skinned boy pointed out.

"Well maybe it's time we do. But first, we decide who gets the water," Kat decided. Everyone nodded in agreement, except for Owen. He looked around at everyone, and couldn't help noticing that one girl from before was missing.

"Help! Help!"

All of them looked around frantically to see where the call was coming from. The Asian girl that Owen recognized as the one who had been missing shoved through into the circle and said in a shaking voice, "She's dehydrated. We need water for her!" Kat looked down at the bottle in her hand.

"Lead me to her."

"Who?" the little thirteen-year-old boy said. No one answered him as Kat and the Asian girl rushed down the beach to a small shape in the sand. Owen and the dark-skinned boy that had announced the last adult's death followed, a bit slower.

"Come on, come on," Kat urged. She dipped the nozzle of the bottle into a little girl's mouth. She looked absolutely horrible. The skin below her eyes looked raw and dry and there was a deep gash on her cheek. Kat took a bottle of antiseptic out of her pocket and put it on the girl's cheek.

"Where has she been, Marissa?" Kat asked the Asian girl.

"She was sitting here all alone before, and she wouldn't talk to me no matter what I said." Marissa seemed to be speaking very quickly, almost too fast for Owen to understand. "I don't know what was wrong with her. Probably shock. But she was always sitting up. Then, she suddenly collapsed and wouldn't move or open her eyes."

"It's dehydration," Kat concluded. The girl let out a small squeak, as if she was trying to speak to them. Owen blinked, kneeling down beside Kat. He grabbed the bottle as she tucked the hair out of the girl's eyes. Owen gave it to her in small sips so that he wouldn't overwhelm her.

After the fifth sip, the girl coughed and sputtered and choked on the water while jerking her head up. Owen sighed. He'd thought she was a goner. He gave the bottle to her and said, "Drink it in small sips. There ya go." Her brown eyes were wide with panic and shock; she was most likely wondering where she was.

Owen looked to Kat for thanks, but she moved so that the girl could put her head in her lap. "It's alright. You're okay now. Don't worry."

"Mommy…" she said softly. Owen exchanged a nervous glance with Marissa. He recognized that voice, from the whining girl a few rows ahead.

But none of the adults had survived.

"She's going to be okay?" Marissa questioned hopefully.

"Yeah," Kat said weakly, as if she almost didn't believe it herself. She let out a sigh and brushed her fingers through the girl's hair. "Drink some more water, sweetie." The girl put the bottle to her lips and took tiny sips.

"I'll take it from here," Marissa reassured them, taking the girl's head from Kat's lap and laying it in her own. "I'll make sure she's okay."

They all nodded. The dark-skinned boy stood up and left before anyone else. Kat looked a bit wary to let Marissa stay with the little girl alone, but she stood up anyways. Just as Owen turned to leave, he heard Marissa ask, "So what's your name?"

"Hailey…" the girl said weakly. "Hailey Paccara."

Owen sighed and looked out at the setting sun as he reached the others. Everyone had already lied down, as if it had been publicly announced that it was time to sleep. Owen laid down himself; all of them were exhausted from the crash. It was so rare and unexpected. He closed his eyes and tried not to think about it, but what else was there to think about?


	5. Day 2 Morning

_Day 2…Morning_

April blinked her eyes open. At first, she didn't realize where she was; where were her comfortable bed and cushy pillows and pink walls and her yellow rug. She felt around with her hand, unexpectedly realizing that sand was seeping through in between her fingers.

"Ohhh…" she groaned and sat up. Her back was sore from sleeping on the ground. "Where am I?" she asked. Looking out before her, she could see a vast see, with waves crashing on the sandy shore.

"You're on 'Suck It Island'," commented a small boy beside her. April shrieked and scooted away from him. Looking around her, she could see that she wasn't the only one hear. There were others, with dirty faces and crusty eyes.

As April's eyes adjusted to the light, it all came back to her.

_She couldn't breathe. "Mom, Mom, it's only for a week," April tried to reassure her. "You don't have to worry. I'll be back soon." Her mother was squeezing her in a tight embrace, almost choking her from air._

"_I'm just worried about your sister," her mother said, her voice muffled in April's blonde hair. April didn't respond; whenever someone brought up the topic of her sister she was always quiet. But of course, she was the only reason April was going on this trip. Without Belle, she wouldn't have had the idea to go to Hawaii._

_Everyone in her class thought that she was only going for the glamorous beachside lifestyle. Going and getting an attractive suntan was what she was known for. Of course, April wasn't going to forget about the wonderful surroundings of Hawaii, but that wasn't the main reason she was going. It was sort of offending to her that her friends back in Kentucky thought that she was only going to Hawaii for the beaches and the hula dancing and great shopping. Her boyfriend Tommy of course believed that and was wondering why she wasn't taking him along._

_She was bringing Ronnie and Wendy, but the only reason for this was she didn't want her friends becoming too suspicious. They went everywhere together, and if April didn't bring them along with her after all of their begging and pleading, they would be suspecting her of doing something awfully strange. And that would get around school before she got back. April couldn't imagine the teasing and taunting she would receive._

_Ronnie grabbed April's arm and exclaimed, "Come on! Hawaii, here we come!" April smiled and went through the security arch right after her. Hopefully, she could get away for a day and spend time where they were keeping Belle. She had a sinking feeling in her stomach as Wendy followed after them._

"_I am so excited, April!" Wendy said as they went to the waiting room. "I've never flown across a sea before. We're going to Hawaii where there're beaches and flowers and surfers!"_

_April imagined herself lying on the beach in a bikini, watching a bunch of surfers in the waves. One would come down and sit next to her and talk. Meanwhile, her skin would get a perfect tan and her hair would become even lighter than it was._

_A voice came over a loudspeaker and announced that their flight was about to leave. The three of them rushed through the door and onto the plane with their bags. April found a seat and placed her sequined bag up in the compartment above their heads. Wendy looked around and said, "Any hotties around here?" April scoped out the scene too. This was something they normally did, looking for cute boys and talking to them._

"_Ha, look at that guy!" April couldn't help laughing as a huge gothic guy walked in front of their seat. "Nice makeup," April commented, loud enough so that he could clearly hear. His eyes were painted with dark makeup as he looked her up and down. April gulped as he looked at her, and Ronnie whispered in her ear, "He's checking you out, April. You better watch out!" April immediately looked away. When the gothic guy had gone away, she burst out in laughter._

"_You're hotter than you think you are, April!" Wendy laughed._

"_I wouldn't say that," April giggled. Wendy looked up and pointed as a redheaded girl in hideous pigtails moved into the row in front of them._

"_Look at her hair," Wendy whispered. April glanced at them, waiting for them to ask her to taunt the girl. She knew that it was wrong, but sometimes when they urged her to she couldn't help it. If she didn't listen to them, her rep would be killed._

_They both looked at her expectantly, as if waiting for her to speak up. "Hey redhead!" April said finally, a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach as the girl looked over the seat._

"_I love your hair," April said. She cocked her head as she said, "Did you forget to brush it or did your Mom just set it on fire while trying to blow dry it this morning?" The girl turned around as if April had offended her more than she'd meant to. Wendy and Ronnie started giggling as the redhead talked with the Asian girl who had sat there before._

"_And you?" the Asian girl said._

"_Kat," the girl grunted annoyingly._

"_Meow!" April imitated out of spite. She heard silence in front of them which meant she had hit a nerve. She laughed as Wendy put up her brown hair in ugly pigtails and tried to smile innocently._

"_Nice, Wendy," she smiled._

_The redhead stood up and went to walk somewhere else. "Hopefully she'll go to the bathroom to redo her hair," Ronnie laughed. April giggled along with them, though she didn't quite agree with what she had done._

_The plane suddenly jerked a bit underneath them. April looked around frantically. She'd never been on a plane before, and was wondering if that normally happened. She looked over at Ronnie, who had been on a plane twice before because she had relatives in Mexico. She shook her head as if reading April's mind. The seatbelt sign blinked on and April immediately tightened her seatbelt out of instinct as the announcement came on._

_The plane jerked once again, and April couldn't help screaming. Worry was beginning to envelop her. The plane lurched a third time, and a metal suitcase came crashing down from the top compartments. April's heart skipped a beat as it hit a man on the head and split his skull. She shrieked at the top of her lungs as blood spattered over her lacy pink tank top._

_The plane jerked again and people were starting to scream even louder. Wendy and Ronnie were both shrieking in her ear as the back of the plane tore off and a sound like a hurricane competed with their lungs._

_The oxygen masks popped out and April shoved it onto her face. She screamed into it as the plane came crashing to the ground and ripped apart._

April blinked her eyes once again as she looked up at the sky. She was searching the blue sky desperately for any sign of a rescue plane. "Why aren't they here yet?" she couldn't help whining. No one bothered listening to her complaints.

April sighed and looked around. The redhead was searching through another bag and the Asian girl was completely gone. April had found it awkward watching the redhead lead everyone, after what she'd said to her.

"Um, hey, uh, Kat?" she asked nervously. She couldn't help feeling the dryness of her throat. She wouldn't be able to last much longer without some water.

The redhead looked up at her. "Meow?" she said in an innocent voice. April gulped, feeling even guiltier than she had before.

"I—" she began.

"Save it," Kat said. "I know you want water. Here you go." She passed a bottle of water to her and April took a large swig, sighing in contentment. She stood up and walked down the beach, unable to stay near the dreary people any longer.

She walked far enough so that the tide was splashing up onto her feet and the wet sand was seeping through her toes. She tried to enjoy it. April had, after all, imagined it just like this. Only, she would be on Hawaii and there would be hot surfers around her. She couldn't help a small tear that trickled down her cheek.

She'd wanted so badly to see Belle, but now that might never happen. She went farther out into the water, until the water was up to her waist and her shorts were soaked. She took a deep breath and dived into the water, feeling her hair flow through the water.

She broke through the surface for a breath of air, but just as she took one, a wave crashed down on her head. She was pushed down underwater by the strong wave and flipped over so that she didn't know which way was which. Trying urgently to reach the surface, she flailed her limbs about. Panic clutched her heart as she twirled and kicked and splashed about, unable to realize where she was going. Water was filling her lungs and she was starting to sink.

Suddenly, she felt arms around her and she struggled and thrashed even more. April tried to scream but it only came out as a large gulp as more water entered her lungs. All of the sudden, she was thrown onto the shore, coughing and spluttering and trying her best to breathe.

"What were you thinking!" she heard Kat exclaim. "The last thing we need to do is go for a swim!" April opened her eyes, which were stinging from the salt water, and looked to her left. Lying in the sand, clothes soaked was a tall and muscular guy, that she was betting had been her savior.

April slowly sat up and recognized the dark face, though it was much different from the face she had seen before because all the makeup had been washed off. He looked her up and down and said darkly, "You're lucky I don't hold a grudge."

Standing up, he turned and left her. April took a few deep breaths. Everyone had followed Kat down the beach and back towards the jungle. April sighed and wondered why her heart was pounding even faster than it had been before. Maybe it was that man's dark face and his muscles that he had revealed when taking his shirt off to go and save her.

Why did he save her?


	6. Day 2 Midday

_Day 2…Midday_

Luke sat there, gazing at her intently. "You know, this would be much easier if you would talk," he commented casually. The wind was blowing in his short light brown hair, and sending hers scattering across her cheeks. She seemed to be only about a year younger than he was, or maybe just small for her age. She wouldn't move, she wouldn't speak. She just sat in the sand, hugging her knees to her chest and staring out at the sparkling ocean.

The Asian girl that had introduced herself as Marissa to him had decided she needed a break and asked him to watch her and make sure she drank.

"But what's her name?" Luke had asked as Marissa hurried off for a moment alone.

"Hailey Paccara!" Marissa had shouted over her shoulder. And now Luke was just sitting here, staring at the twelve-year-old girl, hoping that Marissa would return soon.

"Would you at least say something?" Luke asked. He couldn't understand why this girl was having a much worse time than everyone else. It wasn't like they hadn't gone through the same things she had. He narrowed his eyes as she blinked.

"So your name is Hailey?" he asked, trying to sound friendly. He couldn't help getting frustrated with her silence and depression. She didn't even nod subtly. "Paccara?" he tried once again. "Please answer me, Hailey."

"She used to call me Hailstorm," she whispered. Luke blinked, surprised that she had even opened her mouth. Hailey didn't say anything else, and it caused Luke to wonder who "she" was. Maybe this was passing through her mind as he asked her what her name was. She obviously didn't feel like elaborating.

"Hailstorm," he said slowly. Who would give a girl such a silly pet name? He sighed and tucked his knees into his chest, imitating her. For a moment, he glanced over at her and said, "Aren't you hungry?" She didn't respond in the slightest. "Fine," he grunted. "Two can play this game, you know." Hiking up his shorts, he got ready to sit completely still and stare out at the ocean.

Hailey didn't seem to notice what he was doing and he couldn't stand it for more than one minute. "That's it!" he exclaimed, standing up immediately. "You can just take care of yourself." He stalked off and found the others sitting idly by while the redhead looked in a few bags for more water.

Marissa came walking by, and she looked him up and down. "Hey! What are you doing away from her?" She had a panicked look on her face, as if she felt it was her responsibility to take care of Hailey. She skidded to a stop and went running over to where Hailey was sitting.

"What's her problem?" asked the African American. Luke rolled his eyes and followed Marissa over to where Hailey was sitting. She was holding a water bottle up to her mouth and saying, "Come on, Hailey. If you don't drink anything, you'll get dehydrated again."

"Give it up," Luke suggested. Marissa looked up incredulously.

"What?"

"I said give it up," he said. The girl turned her head and looked at him as he went on. "If she wants to sit there and starve herself and act like a baby while the rest of us are doing everything we can, go ahead and let her."

The girl stood up and shoved him to the ground. Surprised, Luke let out a yelp and shook his head as if he had been hallucinating. "What are you doing?"

"Don't call me a baby!" she said clearly in her British accent. Luke had never expected that she was British until she spoke.

"Now you speak!" he laughed. She glared at him and sat down in her regular spot again. He wondered why she was so sensitive to his insult. She stared out at the ocean as a single tear trickled down her cheek.

"Leave her alone…" Marissa paused for a moment.

"Luke," he finished her sentence.

"She doesn't need you right now," Marissa pointed out.

"Need me? Of course she does!" Luke countered. "I'm the only one that could get her to speak!" Marissa slapped his arm and gave the bottle to the little girl.

"You got her angry, and now she'll probably never speak again," Marissa told him.

"You're the one talking about her like she isn't even hear right now," Luke said. He wondered why he was arguing with a complete stranger, but his stress-level was on high now.

Marissa didn't respond, as if Luke had made her realize that she was also wrong. He couldn't believe this, how she was accusing him of giving the little girl life. "You know what?" he said straight to Hailey. "I'm only about a year older than you are. So suck it up."

He had to admit it sounded a bit harsh, especially for him to say. But he was frustrated with sitting for a half-an-hour next to this girl and trying to get her to speak. He stalked off and sat by himself beneath a palm tree.

"What do you think about it?"

Luke looked up and saw a brunette with deep brown eyes coming to sit next to him. He blinked in confusion, not understand what she meant. He was surprised anyone was even speaking to him; he would rather spend his time alone while waiting for the rescue planes to arrive.

"What do I think about what?" he asked slowly, trying to digest her question.

"About when we're going to be rescued," the brunette explained.

Luke didn't reply for a moment. He hadn't even wondered about this himself. There was no way he could tell if they were ever going to come, though he hoped in his best heart that they would soon. There was no food to eat, no water to drink and tensions were running high.

"I guess they'll be here anytime soon," he answered calmly, though he was thinking differently. Inside his mind, he was beginning to doubt whether or not they would be rescued or not?

Oh why did he stow away on that plane?

_It was hot and stuffy in the vent. Looking around desperately for some sort of light, he felt the metal walls with his hands. Suddenly, he could see some sort of exit through a long tunnel and out into where the baggage was being put into the plane. He crawled forward, not caring that his hands were blistering from rubbing against the metal floor._

_He finally reached the exit and looked through the vent where the air would come out. There were workers everywhere, placing bags onto a little conveyer belt that brought them into the baggage storage of the plane. In his mind, he quickly developed a plan. He'd done this a thousand times, thinking up methods to sneak around and break the rules._

_He fumbled around in his pocket and brought out a screw driver. Quickly unscrewing the nails that held the vent in place, he made sure to stay silent and invisible. The vent came off easily, which made him wonder why security hadn't realized he was here yet. If a small child could fit through these vents, there was a chance that a terrorist would be able to, too._

_But that wasn't the reason that he was trying to stow away. He had to get to Hawaii, but he couldn't afford a plane ticket. He had come to the airport previously to scope everything out and develop a well thought-out plan. He placed the vent carefully by the side of the wall and crawled out, keeping low to the floor._

_He looked around and found a small bag in a pile that no one was looking through. He grabbed it and through it to his right, making sure that it made plenty of clatter and disturbance. Thinking it was a stowaway, which it was, the men went rushing over to investigate it._

_Their backs all turned, Luke ran over to a huge pile of bags, where the larger ones were. He quietly unzipped one and slipped into it. Before the guards turned their backs, he zipped the suitcase back up and squeezed so that he could fit in with the rest of the clothes. He tucked his screw driver back into his back pocket and tried to get comfortable inside the suitcase. Luckily, there weren't that many clothes inside, but he was growing taller since last month, surprisingly, and it was hard to fit inside._

_He suddenly felt himself being lifted and heard a groan from outside the bag. "This one is heavy," a man with a deep voice commented. Luke closed his eyes tightly, hoping that he wouldn't be suspicious enough to open it._

_He didn't, and Luke was put on the conveyer belt and brought up into the plane. He felt the bag shuddering around him as the bag went up the conveyer belt._

_He waited a few moments once he was inside the plane to unzip it. Looking around, he saw that everything had been put in the storage and the plane door had been closed. If he didn't get to the seats by the time the plane took flight, he would be in danger if anything happened._

_He put his hat, which had slipped off, back on and slipped through the piles of bags. He found a small vent and crawled through it like he had the others, hoping it would bring him to second class. He found the exit and looked around. He was in the bathroom._

_He stood up, glad to finally be able to stretch. He opened the door a crack, just to see where he was. The plane was humming; it was about to take flight. There were two men outside his door, which he kept practically closed._

"_Collins thinks that there's a stowaway somewhere on here. You need to check everyone's ticket and see if there are any suspicions."_

_Luke closed his eyes tightly, wondering if they would check immediately in the bathroom. He watched until the two men had left and gone to check everyone's tickets. Luke crept out of the bathroom, tripping because of the plane's takeoff._

_Holding onto the walls, he looked around towards where everyone was sitting. Hopefully he could sneak past the guards and wouldn't have them check his ticket._

_He casually walked down the aisle while the plane was in the air, with his hat on to hide his face. He looked behind him at a little girl that was crying at her mother._

_Letting out a confused yelp, he slammed into some tall figure. Looking up, he saw a man in a blue uniform. He gulped as the man looked him up and down, as if pondering whether such a small and young child could've stowed away. "Can I check your ticket please?" he asked. Luke recognized his deep voice._

"_Uh, well…" he stuttered. "I sorta lost it." He looked straight into the man's eyes and tried to appear as innocent as possible. The worst part of getting in trouble was when you were caught, he had decided long ago. If it was something illegal, he was in more trouble than he would be at school._

"_Did you lose it, or never have it?" the man said suspiciously._

"_Ya see…" he said slowly. "Here's the thing." He tried thinking quickly. The man already saw him as a suspect, he could tell. "Gotta go!" he exclaimed, and shot past the man into the crowd of seats._

"_Hey!" the man shouted. "Get that—" He wasn't able to finish, for at that moment the plane shifted slightly. Luke tripped on his feet and landed on the floor. The plane jerked again and people were starting to get anxious._

_Luke sat up and looked around for an empty seat where he could hide his face and look like a normal person with a plane ticket. There was a seat next to an old woman that he jumped into as the plane lurched again._

_The seatbelt sign had already blinked on, so Luke buckled himself up immediately. He didn't know exactly what was going on, but he was sure he wasn't going to like it._

Thinking back, he barely remembered what had happened after that. He sighed as the brunette looked into the distance and thought about what he had said. "Ya think so?" she asked quietly.

Luke didn't know how to answer that.


	7. Day 2 Afternoon Part 1

_Day 2…Afternoon Part 1_

Kat sighed as she found another empty bottle inside a suitcase. Why would someone carry an empty bottle to Hawaii? There seemed to be any water. She brushed her curly red hair, which she hadn't brushed since the morning before, out of her face and peered closer at the bottle.

"Uh, scuse me?"

Kat turned and saw the blonde standing there. She didn't feel much like conversing with her, after all the trouble she'd caused. First, she insulted her, and then she went and almost got herself drowned. Obviously, she wasn't going to be any worth speaking to on this island, or anywhere for that matter.

"What do you want?" she grunted angrily, throwing the bottle aside. "You gonna whine about something else?" She didn't see the hurt look on the blonde's face. Not caring what she was about to say, Kat turned and walked over to another suitcase. Her throat was itching with dryness, and the simmering sun was making it even worse.

"Hey, Kat?"

She felt like she was being surrounded. Why was everyone asking her questions and acting like she was their leader? There was Marissa, standing there with a worried look on her face. "What?"

"We need more water. Hailey, that little girl over there, doesn't have any left," she said with a sick look on her face.

"Looks like you got yourself a dilemma," said a voice behind her. Startled, Kat whirled around to see the tall dark guy that had saved the blonde's life before. His face looked so murky that she didn't respond.

Kat paused for a moment before saying loudly so that everyone could hear, "Well, if you want water, you should stop sitting on your butts and get some!" She stalked off and sat below a pine tree, closing her eyes for a moment of rest. She lifted her head and looked up at the sky. But the branches of the palm tree were blocking her way.

She blinked, thinking carefully before standing up and starting to climb the trunk. She could see a few coconuts attached to the top of the tree. If she could only reach it, they would have something to drink. She felt the bark scratching against her bare legs as she tucked her hair behind her ear before continuing up the trunk.

"What are you doing?" asked the African American boy. Kat didn't bother answering; all questions would be answered when she finished picking those coconuts. She reached up and touched the rough shell, shaking it until it came loose. The coconut dropped easily to the ground, and Kat reached for another one. The other took a bit more shaking to get it to come off, but eventually all three were on the ground.

"Does anyone have anything sharp?" she asked, picking up a coconut from the ground and wondering how she would be able to split it open.

The boy wearing the hat, now backwards on his head, stepped forward and held out a screwdriver. Kat narrowed her eyes and said, "Where did you get that?" He looked a bit nervous as soon as he saw the suspicion in her eyes.

"Nowhere. Just a suitcase. I kept it in my pocket in case we might need it later. Looked handy enough," he replied nonchalantly. Kat snatched it from him and began working a hole into the tough shell of the coconut with the sharp end of the screwdriver. Eventually, the outer shell wore away and there was a small perforation in the coconut.

Kat tipped it over into her hand and felt a soft droplet on her palm. Hurriedly, she sucked it off of her hand and, though she hated the bitter taste, felt like she hadn't had water in days. She let out a sigh and collapsed on the ground.

"Can I have some?" The little boy in the baseball cap stepped forward with an outstretched hand. Kat looked up at him peculiarly, blinking as she examined his face. She handed him the coconut and stood up.

"Miss?"

She looked over again, now getting used to the fact that everyone was looking towards her to answer all of the questions. It was Owen. She rolled her eyes and said exasperatedly, "What do you want, Owen?"

"I was just wondering if you've ever dealt with dead bodies. That guy over there is starting to creep me out." To Kat, Owen never sounded as if he was serious, but she glanced over to where he was pointing. It was the dead man she had tried to save previously; he was still lying beneath the palm tree. She hadn't wondered about him since he had died, though it had been tough to realize she wasn't able to save him. But she was a girl of priorities, and to her, helping everyone else was more important than grieving over a dead man she didn't even know. She stood up and walked over to him. His eyes were still open, staring lifelessly out at the ocean. Kat gulped, seeing the blood soaked through his shirt. She shot a sideways glance to Owen before kneeling besides him.

"Maybe we should move his body," she suggested. Owen nodded and grabbed his arm, beginning to drag him over to a large chunk of metal that would keep his body from frying in the sun. No one would have to see him there and be haunted by his glazed eyes.

As his body shifted, there was a soft crunch. Owen flinched and dropped the man's hand. Kat blinked and saw a small piece of paper crinkled up into a ball by his left hand. She reached down and picked it up. Her breath caught as she unwrinkled it and smoothed it out, seeing a bright red.

It was blood.

She felt herself choking as she finally smoothed it all out, and read the message that was painted there. It was messy and written in blood that had leaked all over the thin paper, making it difficult to decipher. "What is that?" Owen stuttered nervously. Kat didn't reply. She was too busy reading what the man had written in small letters with his own blood.

It said:

_The pilot was lost._

_They are looking in the wrong place._

Kat blinked, letting the words sink in to her brain, deciding what they meant. It was a warning…The pilot was lost. She looked up at Owen, her heart pounding almost as fast as it had been when the back of the plane tore off.

"What is it?" he repeated urgently. Kat handed him the note and sat down, afraid she wouldn't be able to stand up on her own two feet. He looked the note up and down before saying loudly, "The pilot was lost?"

There was a gasp from somewhere over near the wreckage. The blonde girl came running over; she had obviously heard what Owen had shouted. "They're not coming for us?" she exclaimed, gaping. Kat took a deep breath and stood up as the others came racing over.

"Are they looking for us in the wrong place?" said the dark-skinned boy.

"What are we going to do?" the brunette wailed. Her eyes were wide with fear, along with the blonde's. Kat wasn't even staying calm, but she took a few deep breaths to slow her heartbeat. Panicking would only make things worse, she figured.

As the kids started shouted at each other, Kat raised her voice about theirs and shouted, "Guys!" They all looked over at her. "How do we know if this guy is right?" she asked them. "What's the use of panicking over a little note?"

Marissa had come over at this time. She was glancing around at everyone wondering what was going on. "He wrote it in his last dying moments," Owen pointed out pessimistically. "If he was going to write anything, why would it be a lie?"

Kat pondered this for a moment. She didn't want to believe Owen was right, partly because he almost never was. But his words were making sense in her mind. Gradually the worried murmurs developed into yells and whines as she thought.

"Hey!" she finally screamed. "If it is true, crying about it isn't going to do any good!" Everyone was silenced by her harsh words. They didn't want to be told not to panic; they probably weren't good for anything else, but Kat had to control them before things got worse. She looked at each of them in turn and crunched the note in her palm, dropping it on the ground. "The planes aren't looking for us," she said matter-of-factly. She heard the blonde let out a whimper. "At least not in the right place. They're still out there, but they probably won't find us as quickly as we thought they would. That means we can't just sit around here and wait for a rescue. We have to do something. Otherwise, we're all going to starve here…"

Everyone was mesmerized by her small speech. It had shut them all up at least, she supposed. Finally, after a minute of silence, someone else spoke: "So what do we do now, Chief?" It was Marissa, and surprisingly she was smiling. Kat learned at that moment that her assumption of Marissa from the beginning on the plane had been correct. She was the sort of peppy optimistic annoying little twerp that Kat would most likely usually ignore. But now it seemed that Marissa was the only one being realistic.

"I say we should figure out who will be leader," Owen offered. Kat pursed her lips and sighed.

"A leader for what?" the blonde asked.

"A leader for the group," Owen explained. "We can't make it through this without a leader." The kids began, one at a time, to slowly nod their heads in agreement.

"I vote Kat!" Marissa announced.

"Woh, woh, woh, voting?" asked the gothic guy, whose face wasn't quite as dark without his makeup on. Kat blinked, thinking on what the two of them had said.

"That's a good idea," she said loudly. "Why don't we put it to a vote?" Everyone agreed. She paused for a moment before saying, "Okay, who wants—" Owen interrupted her.

"Who wants me as a leader?" he asked. No one raised their hand. Kat folded her arms across her chest and looked at him as if he was way out of his league.

"Who wants Kat as the leader?" Marissa suggested. Everyone raised their hands. The blonde was a bit hesitant, and so was the gothic guy. Kat figured that the blonde would become used to the way things would go around here in time. She needed to learn that she needed to grow up and take care of herself.

"I guess I'm the new leader," Kat said slowly.

"That's not fair," Owen objected.

"It's what everyone decided on," Kat countered. "Now we're going to do things right. We need to get organized." She looked at each of them, wondering what their strengths would be. She figured that the gothic guy could lift large weights and the blonde was good at rearranging things.

"You two," she pointed at both of them. They nervously glanced at each other, as if Kat had just humiliated them. "You arrange a place for us to lie down, out of the sun. Use whatever you can: towels, blankets, pieces of metal. Even sticks." She turned over to the dark-skinned boy and the African American boy and Owen. "We're going to need food. Pick some coconuts and whatever else you find." The two girls nodded, but Owen was slow to agree.

"What if I—" He stopped when the gothic guy gave him an exasperated look.

"You," Kat pointed to the little boy in the cap and to the brunette and Marissa. "Sort through the suitcases and find clothes and bottles and whatever else you want to keep." They nodded and went off together to find a suitcase to sort through. The boy didn't seem too enthusiastic about working with clothes, but he didn't complain.

"What are you going to do?" Owen asked hotly.

"Me?" she asked casually. "I'm going to look for water."

"Bu—But, you can't go out there alone!" he stuttered. Kat was a bit puzzled. She figured that Owen would want her to go and get lost in the jungle. She blinked, and the others covered their mouths with their hands for some reason she couldn't understand.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"You could get hurt," Owen said quickly and nervously. Kat was wondering why he was sweating, but she figured he was right. "I'll come with you," Owen offered. Kat thought for a moment and nodded, trudging off into the woods, a small bottle of water in her hand. Owen went trailing after her and everyone went to the jobs she had assigned, heart still sinking from the message they had discovered.


End file.
